


Price of Love

by Liza0111



Category: Heavy Rain
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Confrontations, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Norman arriving at the old warehouse before Ethan
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-19
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2019-06-12 21:02:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,570
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15348666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liza0111/pseuds/Liza0111
Summary: Ethan rushed into the old warehouse in time to see Scott Shelby firing his gun at the FBI agent who aided in his escape from police custody. He recognized the head of short brown hair of the man who risked everything he had to free him, the only one who truly believed in his innocence when the whole world called him a child kidnapper and murderer. He wanted to yell but no voice came out. Ethan stood paralyzed, his mind going blank at the pool of red spreading beneath the lifeless body of Norman Jayden.





	Price of Love

The overwhelming relief and joy of finding Shaun Mars alive was rudely interrupted by the abrupt arrival of Scott Shelby, in the form of a harsh kick to his back and then a few more on his stomach and side. Jayden gritted his teeth while he struggled to get up, only to be kicked down in the face again by the older man while he was going on with his tirade.

 

“What is real love, if it isn’t sacrifice?” Shelby shouted with anger, “all those people saying they are in love with each other……they’re just a pack of liars!”

 

 _Goddamnit, what the hell is wrong with this man? He is sick and twisted……_ Jayden found himself becoming increasingly angry and frustrated, worried not for his own safety but primarily for Shaun’s. The boy was breathing after he used CPR on him, but he was still in an extremely weakened state and required medical attention as soon as possible. Norman knew if he died here, it would be over for Shaun as well, and he couldn’t have that.

 

To tell the truth, the pain was terrible. He was sure that Shelby definitely broke something inside of him when he was kicking him, but at this point it wasn’t like Norman wasn’t used to have the shit beat out of him during his investigations. Furthermore, he had a reason to fight. He suddenly remembered Ethan Mars’ pleading eyes, and imagining Ethan having to lose another son was more painful than anything Scott Shelby could do to him. He couldn’t let Shelby win here. Ethan Mars shouldn’t have to lose both of his children and be framed for crimes he had never committed in the first place. This would be the last straw for that poor man.

 

 _Sacrifice._ Norman’s lips nearly twitched at the irony found in this word choice. Shelby is chastising him for risking his life and trying to save an innocent boy and his father’s life. He was essentially doing what Scott Shelby wanted to see, people making sacrifices for the ones they love. He may not be Shaun Mars’ father, but couldn’t he make the same choice for the sake of someone he cared about? He hadn’t spent much time with them, but he was overwhelmed with desires to protect them at all cost. He only wanted to protect Ethan and Shaun, why wasn’t he allowed to do so?

 

Jayden shifted his weight back, leaning on his elbow in attempts to get away from Shelby’s brutal assaults, but the man was relentless. He heard the click of a gun, and saw the barrel pointed squarely at his forehead. The FBI agent felt a breath getting trapped in his throat as the man glared down cold-heartedly at him. Scott Shelby did not know mercy in his heart and he had no reason to spare Jayden.

 

Norman’s gaze shifted towards the little boy lying on the floor, terrified, cold, and barely moving. Was this it? Did he fail Ethan and his son? He had came so far, even resorting to using Tripto so he could continue his investigation. His heart started aching once again at the thought of Ethan being put behind bars for Shelby’s revolting actions. It only occurred to him now that he viewed the father and the son’s lives as more precious than his own.

 

“You shouldn’t have gotten mixed up in this……now you discovered my little secret. And it will die with you.”

 

Norman watched Scott pulled the trigger, and in a fit of adrenaline rush he raised his arm to push on the side of the gun with the little strength he had left. His sudden action made a slight difference to the bullet’s trajectory, and instead of entering his chest as Shelby aimed for, the bullet shot through his shoulder. A pang of searing pain was sent to the site of his wound and Norman groaned loudly. He barely had time to react before he felt another hit on his abdomen.  

 

The blood loss was dulling his senses. Norman pant heavily, his hand weakly pressing against his injury over his stomach and turning his head towards the direction of Shaun. He made a pathetic attempt at shifting his body towards the boy before he completely blacked out.

 

Before he lost consciousness, Norman hazily thought of his biggest regret if he was to die here.

 

_I am sorry, Ethan, I am so sorry I couldn’t save your son……_

_I am sorry......Shaun......._

 

 

 

 

Ethan could feel the vibration of his heart beating violently in his chest. He had realized his mistake midway to his original destination. Against the Origami Killer’s direct command, he couldn’t bring himself to kill another father of young children. He was lacking vital information to deduce Shaun’s whereabouts, and knowing he didn’t have much time left, he made a leap of faith in betting on one of the possible locations. Something in his guts told him he should rethink his guess, so after driving for a brief while, Ethan came to a halt on the side of the road to rewatch and listen to the videos of Shaun being kept under the well. That was when he noticed the small piece of detail he had missed the first time and made the revelation that the location must be near a port. He turned the car around and drove towards his new destination with full speed, ignoring the speed limit on the way.

 

As he approached the old warehouse, he heard the voice of an angry man, and his heart rate increased while terror grasped his lungs. This was the real Origami Killer, the man who kidnapped his son and murdered eight other young boys. If the killer was here, then Shaun must be nearby too. He must save his son. Without a second of hesitation, he started running towards the source of the voice, praying that he wasn’t too late.

 

_Shaun, wait for me!  Hold on just a little longer, please, son……!_

 

Ethan rushed into the old warehouse in time to see Scott Shelby firing his gun at the FBI agent who aided in his escape from police custody. He recognized the head of short brown hair of the man who risked everything he had to free him, the only one who truly believed in his innocence when the whole world called him a child kidnapper and murderer. He wanted to yell but no voice came out. Ethan stood paralyzed, his mind going blank at the pool of red spreading beneath the lifeless body of Norman Jayden.

 

Shelby wasn’t done just yet. He was pointing his gun at Jayden still, this time aiming at his head. The agent seemed to have lost his consciousness and made no sound nor movement, lying on the floor completely still. Ethan reacted before his mind could put together coherent thoughts. “This is enough!” He shouted at the man. Startled by his unexpected entrance, Scott Shelby turned around and faced him with the oddity of satisfaction and bitterness.

 

“Ah, Ethan Mars, you made it. Took you some time, huh? But you finally made it here. I’ve been looking for a long, long time, Ethan, for a father that would do anything to save his son……”

 

“Dad……” Upon hearing his father’s voice, Shaun opened his eyes and cried out to Ethan faintly, terrified and helpless. “Dad……I am here……Help me.......” Shaun's eyelids were falling shut again; the boy was clearly exhausted and drained of energy from the ordeal, hardly able to stay awake. 

 

Ethan glared at Scott Shelby’s smirking face, feeling as if all the blood in his body was boiling in anger. On one side of the room, he saw the pale face of the FBI profiler who had been shot by Shelby, his gray suit quickly colored by a dark hue of red from his blood. On the other side of the room lied Shaun, his precious eleven year old son, who had experienced utter terror inflicted upon him by the same man. He took a deep breath. His pinky finger still ached from the unforgettable pain of having to cut part of his own flesh off with a pair of scissors.

 

They had done nothing to deserve this. Jayden, Shaun, and him. They have all been hurt by this senseless killer standing before him, with no traces of regret on his face.

 

It was enough. The man had taken too much from them. _It was enough._

 

Ethan reached into the pocket of his jacket, his hand wrapping around the grip of the gun like second nature, pointing it at his son’s kidnapper. The weapon was given to him by the very same man, intended to put a bullet through Brad Silver’s brains. Unlike his fourth trial, there was now no hesitation or remorse lingering over Ethan Mars’ conscious.

 

“Go to hell, you bastard.” Ethan gritted his teeth and spat out in resentment. As he pulled the trigger, complete fury consumed his mind temporary. All the grief he had been through, all the losses his family suffered from, every memory was burned into him forever. He thought of everything he could never get back and everything he had to live for.  His deep blue eyes flared up in cold indignation as he glared at Shelby. His gun fired twice. Ethan watched as the man collapsed onto the floor, and the world was quiet again.

 

 

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Unexpectedly starting writing this today and it turned out longer than expected. I feel awful for letting Norman get hurt, I am so sorry T___T  
> I rather enjoyed writing this chapter, especially towards the end to give Ethan some agency after all he had been through.


End file.
